it cheerfully; and while at every village the lieutenant ordered a flourish of trumpets, and tried to arouse the patriotism of the lazy peasants with the cry of “to arms! to arms!” I formed an acquaintance with one of the sutler women, who, trudging along with the brandy wagon, of which she was the proprietor, found time to give me a minute detail of the whole plan of warfare, blamed many of the manœuvres of the Prussians, and threw out numerous hints with regard to the necessary stratagems of war. Bess—for this was the name of my new acquaintance—closely resembled the wood-cuts of her namesake, Queen Bess of merry England, and like her was opposed to all matrimonial connections; while such was her influence among the troops, that in every weighty discussion, she was allowed to take her place in council. It was on the fourth day of our march that Charles the Great called me mysteriously aside, and with a countenance that betokened some great undertaking, observed—“Depend upon it, doctor, war is the best way for making a man’s fortune. I have been lieutenant for eight years, but expect soon to be made general. At present I command two hundred men, who will probably increase to as many thousand by the time we reach the Oder, where I hope to present them to my king, yet not before we have achieved some chivalrous exploit.”
“What! are we not on our way to Berlin?” I asked, in an alarmed tone, as I remembered the beloved Frederica.
“No; we are proceeding direct to Mittenwalde; and as the office of chaplain does not exactly seem to suit you, you must be made a soldier, doctor. A cocked hat, a sword and charger, with the rank of adjutant-general. What say you to that?”
All opposition on my part was needless; and as there was a horse in view, which might, perhaps, aid me on my homeward journey, should an opportunity present itself for absconding, I accepted the flattering commission; and on the same evening, our general (for so he now styled himself) created several new captains, lieutenants and corporals, and unfolded to the astonished troops his gigantic plans for the future.
“Comrades,” cried he, and waved his arms repeatedly towards them, “all is arranged. By our deeds we will once more recall honour to the Prussian name. The spirit of the great Frederic hovers around us. The trembling, bleeding fatherland looks to us for deliverance. And shall we yield to ignoble bondage? What shall be our choice—victory before the world, or a hateful subjection to the French power? Whoever is true to me, their general—whoever will follow me for the sake of his god, his king and his fatherland, let him join in the shout of victory or death!”
This speech was received with great acceptance by our little army, and most of them lent their aid to the patriot cry; but a few who sighed after the flesh pots of Berlin, exchanged it for “victory or bread.”
Unfortunately, the sutler-woman, or, as I should rather call her, Queen Bess, had been forgotten in the arrangements and consultations of the previous evening, and, enraged by the neglect, she secretly vowed vengeance against us for the affront. On the following morning we turned out in our full strength. Charles the Great, with imperial bearing, rode in front, and I, mounted on a somewhat hard-going steed, took my place at his side, with a cheerful countenance, but an aching heart; for of the two roads which lay before us, the left led to Berlin, and the right—for us the path to honour and immortal fame—to Mittenwalde. The army followed in regular array, while in the rear came the baggage-wagons with their brandy casks, and attended by their owner, Queen Bess, who, however, by way of retaliation, parted us company at the fork of the road, and took the direction leading to Berlin.
Alas! she was not permitted to go alone; for no sooner had the rear guard observed the movement of the wagons containing their favourite beverage, than, wheeling right about, they followed its course, and their example, acting instantly on the others, before we were aware, (for in our earnest discourse concerning intended manœuvres, the general and I had advanced considerably,) the whole army, with not a single exception, had become deserters, and marched rapidly after the rumbling conveyance of the sutler woman.
It is difficult to imagine the consternation of our commander, when, on looking accidentally behind, he discovered that his brave troops had entirely disappeared. Putting spurs to his horse, he galloped towards the Berlin road, and soon found the whole corps swarming around the wagon, where sat Bess on a brandy cask, as on a triumphal car, singing in a loud, shrill voice, some stanzas which were boisterously encored.
Not Xenophon or Plutarch’s heroes could have made a more powerful harangue than did our valorous general to his disorderly troops; yet, although they listened with seeming deference and attention, the least onward movement of the enchantress-wagon, caused them to start and show an eagerness to follow in its track. Indeed, I know not how the affair would have terminated if an appeal had not just then been made to their feelings in a way which my next chapter shall explain.
CHAPTER EIGHTH.
MARCH OF THE ARMY OF CHARLES THE GREAT.
Just then, while we were in the very heat of expostulation with our disloyal troops, came at full gallop a hussar, from the very road leading to Berlin, and saluting us with a volley of imprecations, abruptly inquired whither we were hastening.
“To Berlin,” was our ready reply.
“To Berlin!” he exclaimed. “What would you there? The French have already entered that
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